K-3 / K-4Spouse of a U.S. citizen waiting for an immigrant petition

What K-3 and K-4 are

K-3 is a nonimmigrant (temporary) visa for the foreign spouse of a U.S. citizen. It is meant to shorten the time spouses spend apart: you can come to the United States and wait there while USCIS decides the Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, that your spouse filed for you. Your eligible children who come with you or join you later can get K-4 visas.^[1,5]

Who qualifies

From petitions to visa

1. 1

   Your spouse files Forms I-130 and I-129F

   Your U.S. citizen spouse files Form I-130 with USCIS, and Form I-129F either together with the I-130 or after it; an I-129F filed later includes a copy of the Form I-797 receipt notice for the I-130. The I-129F lists your children and comes with your marriage certificate, proof of your spouse's U.S. citizenship, proof that any earlier marriage of either of you ended (if applicable) and a passport-style photo of each of you. It is filed with USCIS in the United States, not at a USCIS office abroad, and has no filing fee when it is for K-3.^[1,7]

2. 2

   Which petition is approved first

   If USCIS approves the I-130 before or at the same time as the I-129F, you no longer need a K-3 visa: once the approved I-130 reaches the State Department, you apply for an immigrant visa, and your children can immigrate with you only if each has an approved I-130 at the State Department at that time. If the I-129F is approved first, USCIS sends it to the State Department and you apply for the K-3 visa.^[1]

3. 3

   Visa application and interview

   You file the online nonimmigrant visa application (Form DS-160) and bring a valid passport, your birth certificate, police certificates if you are 16 or older (where obtainable, from countries where you have lived for set periods and from anywhere you were arrested), proof of your relationship to your spouse, proof that any earlier marriage ended (if not already submitted with the petition), and a medical exam by a panel physician; each accompanying child needs a separate DS-160, a passport (or inclusion in your passport), a birth certificate and a medical exam. As far as practicable, the consular officer decides your eligibility as if you were applying for an immigrant visa, except that the vaccination and labor certification requirements do not apply to the K visa. You do not need Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, but you must show that you will not become a public charge while in the United States, and evidence of support is usually requested.^[1,5,8]

Fees

Living in the U.S. on K-3 or K-4

On a K-3 visa you are admitted for 2 years; a K-4 child is admitted for 2 years or until the 21st birthday, whichever is shorter. You generally cannot change to another nonimmigrant status inside the United States. To extend, you may file Form I-539 in the 120 days before your authorized stay expires; a K-4 child files together with the K-3 parent, and the U.S. citizen stepparent should also file a Form I-130 for that child. You must show that your I-130, I-485 or immigrant visa application is still pending, or good cause for not having filed the I-485 or immigrant visa application after the I-130 was approved; USCIS grants extensions in 2-year increments.^[1,2]

You are automatically authorized to work in K-3 or K-4 status for your authorized stay, and you may file Form I-765 for an EAD at any time after you are admitted; a K-3 or K-4 EAD can be renewed only if you show an application or petition still awaiting approval, the same showing required for an extension of stay. USCIS says you may instead file for a green card and then apply for a work permit based on that pending application, even if your K-3 or K-4 status expires. You may travel abroad temporarily and use your K-3 or K-4 visa to return; you need advance parole (a travel document) only if your visa will have expired when you return and you have a pending Form I-485, and in that case it must be approved before you leave.^[1,2]

Getting the green card

You need an approved I-130 to become a permanent resident (green card holder). USCIS says you may file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, at any time, even while the I-130 is still pending. As a K-3, you may get a green card only through your marriage to the U.S. citizen who petitioned for your K-3 status.^[1,9]

A K-4 child may get a green card only through the step-parent relationship with the U.S. citizen who petitioned for the K-4 visa, and needs a separate Form I-130 before applying. The child counts as a stepchild only if the child was under 18 when the parent married the U.S. citizen. Under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), the child's age freezes on the date the I-130 is filed, so the child remains an immediate relative as long as the U.S. citizen stepparent files the I-130 before the child's 21st birthday.^[1,10]

If you have been married to your U.S. citizen spouse for less than 2 years when USCIS approves your I-485, you and any K-4 children become conditional permanent residents with green cards valid for 2 years; to remove the conditions, you (and your children) and your spouse must file Form I-751 in the 90 days before the green card expires. If you have been married at least 2 years at approval, your green card is valid for 10 years.^[1]

Recent policy changes

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